Abstract
Aedes aegypti (L.; Diptera: Culicidae) has been established in the southwestern United States for several decades, but relationships between humans and mosquitoes in this arid region are not well-characterized. In August 2012, the outdoor premises of 355 houses within 20 neighborhoods in Tucson, Arizona were surveyed for containers that could provide larval habitat for Ae. aegypti mosquitoes. At the same time, a knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) questionnaire was administered to a resident of each house surveyed for immature mosquitoes. The KAP questionnaire assessed respondents' knowledge and concerns about vector-borne illnesses as well as practices they used to avoid mosquitoes. Of the houses surveyed, 91% had at least one container present, and 64% had at least one container with standing water. On average, each house had 2.2 containers with water at the time of the survey. The overall House Index (proportion of premises surveyed with at least one container with Ae. aegypti immatures present) was 13%. Based on questionnaire responses, there was a significant positive association between the number of residents in the home and the odds of finding Ae. aegypti positive containers on the premises, while household income showed a significant negative association. The reported frequency of checking for standing water was also significantly associated with the odds of finding immatures, although the nature of this association was ambiguous. Flower pots were the principal type of container with Ae. aegypti larvae. These findings show that larval habitat is widely available even in an arid environment and city with good housing and sanitation infrastructure.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 955-963 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Journal of medical entomology |
| Volume | 55 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 1 2018 |
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Keywords
- Aedes aegypti
- Arbovirus
- Larval habitat
- Southwestern United States
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Parasitology
- veterinary(all)
- Insect Science
- Infectious Diseases
Cite this
Socioeconomic and human behavioral factors associated with Aedes aegypti (Diptera : Culicidae) immature habitat in Tucson, AZ. / Walker, Kathleen R; Williamson, Daniel; Carriere, Yves; Reyes-Castro, Pablo A.; Haenchen, Steven; Hayden, Mary H.; Gutierrez, Eileen Jeffrey; Ernst, Kacey C.
In: Journal of medical entomology, Vol. 55, No. 4, 01.07.2018, p. 955-963.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Socioeconomic and human behavioral factors associated with Aedes aegypti (Diptera
T2 - Culicidae) immature habitat in Tucson, AZ
AU - Walker, Kathleen R
AU - Williamson, Daniel
AU - Carriere, Yves
AU - Reyes-Castro, Pablo A.
AU - Haenchen, Steven
AU - Hayden, Mary H.
AU - Gutierrez, Eileen Jeffrey
AU - Ernst, Kacey C
PY - 2018/7/1
Y1 - 2018/7/1
N2 - Aedes aegypti (L.; Diptera: Culicidae) has been established in the southwestern United States for several decades, but relationships between humans and mosquitoes in this arid region are not well-characterized. In August 2012, the outdoor premises of 355 houses within 20 neighborhoods in Tucson, Arizona were surveyed for containers that could provide larval habitat for Ae. aegypti mosquitoes. At the same time, a knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) questionnaire was administered to a resident of each house surveyed for immature mosquitoes. The KAP questionnaire assessed respondents' knowledge and concerns about vector-borne illnesses as well as practices they used to avoid mosquitoes. Of the houses surveyed, 91% had at least one container present, and 64% had at least one container with standing water. On average, each house had 2.2 containers with water at the time of the survey. The overall House Index (proportion of premises surveyed with at least one container with Ae. aegypti immatures present) was 13%. Based on questionnaire responses, there was a significant positive association between the number of residents in the home and the odds of finding Ae. aegypti positive containers on the premises, while household income showed a significant negative association. The reported frequency of checking for standing water was also significantly associated with the odds of finding immatures, although the nature of this association was ambiguous. Flower pots were the principal type of container with Ae. aegypti larvae. These findings show that larval habitat is widely available even in an arid environment and city with good housing and sanitation infrastructure.
AB - Aedes aegypti (L.; Diptera: Culicidae) has been established in the southwestern United States for several decades, but relationships between humans and mosquitoes in this arid region are not well-characterized. In August 2012, the outdoor premises of 355 houses within 20 neighborhoods in Tucson, Arizona were surveyed for containers that could provide larval habitat for Ae. aegypti mosquitoes. At the same time, a knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) questionnaire was administered to a resident of each house surveyed for immature mosquitoes. The KAP questionnaire assessed respondents' knowledge and concerns about vector-borne illnesses as well as practices they used to avoid mosquitoes. Of the houses surveyed, 91% had at least one container present, and 64% had at least one container with standing water. On average, each house had 2.2 containers with water at the time of the survey. The overall House Index (proportion of premises surveyed with at least one container with Ae. aegypti immatures present) was 13%. Based on questionnaire responses, there was a significant positive association between the number of residents in the home and the odds of finding Ae. aegypti positive containers on the premises, while household income showed a significant negative association. The reported frequency of checking for standing water was also significantly associated with the odds of finding immatures, although the nature of this association was ambiguous. Flower pots were the principal type of container with Ae. aegypti larvae. These findings show that larval habitat is widely available even in an arid environment and city with good housing and sanitation infrastructure.
KW - Aedes aegypti
KW - Arbovirus
KW - Larval habitat
KW - Southwestern United States
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85061502411&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85061502411&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/jme/tjy011
DO - 10.1093/jme/tjy011
M3 - Article
C2 - 29471405
AN - SCOPUS:85061502411
VL - 55
SP - 955
EP - 963
JO - Journal of Medical Entomology
JF - Journal of Medical Entomology
SN - 0022-2585
IS - 4
ER -